On April 5, 2024, BOOM Live travelled to Guwahati for its first-ever offline event in the north-east. The event titled “Fact-Checking Mel” served as an occasion for the launch of the North East Facts Network, an initiative to strengthen fact-checking efforts in the region.
The day-long event began with a keynote address from Sushmita Goswami, President of the Gauhati Press Club. From examples of misinformation plaguing the reportage to inspiring stories of collective efforts made by journalists to curb the spread, Goswami emphasized the urgency with which fact-checking needs to be adopted in the region.
She urged the media fraternity to make use of already accessible tools and become a “part of the solution.” "In the north-east, we have the means to be a part of the solution. It’s only whether we choose to be,” she added, as a room full of students and journalists nodded in agreement.
As the rest of the day unfolded, BOOM’s Jency Jacob, Managing Editor, H R Venkatesh, Director of Research & Training and Divya Chandra, Producer of Workshops & Training the participants took the participants through workshops on “How to Live and Think like a Fact-Checker” and the “Basics of Fact-Checking.”
Jency Jacob, Managing Editor at BOOM Live highlighted the indispensable skill of fact-checking for journalists. “Journalists will have to be nimble-footed and stay up to date with the latest tech tools to do their job well."
In an interactive session, H R Venkatesh engaged participants in exercises to identify biases and fallacies, emphasizing the lifestyle of critical thinking and skepticism that fact-checkers must adopt. “Not only must we think like fact-checkers, but we must also live like them," he said.”
Divya Chandra, the fact-checking trainer at BOOM Live further added, “There is a misconception that fact-checking is only for journalists and people in the media industry. But it’s actually for everyone who consumes information. Because if you’re consuming information, you are at the risk of consuming mis/disinformation as well. Since there is a huge gap between the rate at which misinformation and fact-checks travel, one needs to learn how to verify information on their own.”
Joining the conversation post-lunch, Rajeev Bhattacharyya held a session on "Fact-checking during Conflict." “In a conflict situation, one comes across varying opinions from all sides. But the reportage must only be based on facts,” Bhattacharyya said. According to Bhattacharyya, journalists thrive on reputation and reporting verifiable facts adds to the credibility of a journalist. “Wherever you go, you will find planted stories. A journalist has to know how to drive a balance.” He continued to say that the thumb rule to honest reporting is to not accept, reject or believe anything, but it is to observe everything.
The event ended with a panel on “Career in fact-checking” where Jency Jacob, H R Venkatesh and Divya Chandra fielded audience questions. “Anyone can be trained in fact-checking,” said Venkatesh. “Although it may be time-consuming and difficult to manage alongside the pressures of breaking news, one should rather get it right than get it first,” Divya Chandra concluded.
Sabina Yasmin Rahman, Project Lead of the North East Facts Network and Titha Ghosh, Associate Producer at BOOM Live co-ordinated the day’s activities.BOOMLive Brings North-East Facts Network To Guwahati.